Position locator

Claim 1

A position locator system mounted on a carrier and having both momentary static and moving modes of operation during each cycle of operation, comprising in combination: first sensor apparatus and circuit means therefor providing a composite electrical output signal comprised of a gravitational force vector component signal G and an acceleration force vector component signal A, said vector component signal A being substantially equal to zero during the stationary mode of operation of said first sensor apparatus; second sensor apparatus and circuit means therefor providing an electrical output signal corresponding to a magnetic pole force vector H; first circuit means coupled to said first sensor apparatus, being responsive to said composite output signal and providing an output signal corresponding to the derivative of the scalor magnitude of said composite output signal; a logic circuit coupled to the output of said first circuit means anD being responsive to the output signal thereof to generate a control signal when the derivative of said composite output signal is substantially zero; a clamping circuit having an input coupled to said first sensor apparatus and being activated by said control signal from said logic circuit to clamp said composite signal during a moving mode of said sensor to remove the vector component signal G from said composite output signal to thereby provide substantially only said vector component signal A; double integration circuit means coupled to said clamping circuit and being responsive to the vector component signal A, performing a double integration with respect to time on said vector component signal A to provide electrical output signal S corresponding to distance; first vector operation circuit means coupled to said second sensor means and being responsive to the magnetic vector signal H provided thereby and to said first sensor apparatus, being responsive to said vector component signal G when said vector component signal A is substantially zero and including means for normalizing the scalor value of the signal G to unity and maintaining said unity value substantially constant and means performing the vector operation H - (G . H) G Hh and providing an electrical output signal Hh which is a component of the vector signal H along a substantially horizontal plane; second vector operation circuit means coupled to said first vector operation circuit means and said electrical output signal Hh provided thereby and said second circuit means and said output signal S provided thereby and including circuit means performing the vector operation Hh . S SN and providing an electrical output signal SN which is a north compass coordinate component signal of S; third vector operation circuit means coupled to said first sensor apparatus, being responsive to the vector component signal G when said vector component signal A is substantially zero and said first vector operation circuit means and said electrical output signal Hh provided thereby and said second circuit means and said output signal S provided thereby, including circuit means performing the vector operation G X Hh . S SE and providing an electrical output signal SE which is an east compass coordinate component signal of S; and means coupled to said electrical output signals SN and SE providing a visual representation thereof.